Fox News Poll: Voters see welfare fraud as common, still mostly favor protecting benefits over crackdowns
As federal authorities continue to crack down on welfare fraud, the latest Fox News survey finds voters are concerned about program abuse, but still also want to protect access for...
By Fox News · Fox News
As federal authorities continue to crack down on welfare fraud, the latest Fox News survey finds voters are concerned about program abuse, but still also want to protect access for legitimate recipients. The survey was conducted before the Department of Justice announced charges against 15 defendants on Thursday in the ongoing Minnesota welfare fraud investigations , one of multiple inquiries into welfare abuse across the country. A majority of registered voters, 71%, believe fraud in government welfare and social service programs is extremely or very common, and nearly half, 45%, think it has increased over the past two years. Just 19% say decreased and 35% believe it has stayed the same. FOX NEWS POLL: 30% THINK RECENT TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT WAS STAGED Yet when weighing enforcement against access, voters prioritize eligible recipients: 56% say ensuring benefits for eligible people should be the higher priority, even if some fraud occurs, while 43% prioritize fraud prevention, even if some eligible people lose benefits. "The data demonstrates what populist candidates understand intuitively," says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who helps conduct the Fox News Poll with Democratic partner Chris Anderson. "Voters think corruption and incompetence are rampant in government, and stories of program fraud from Minneapolis and California reinforce this notion. And articulating this belief plays well with the public. The policy implications are trickier: do you risk restricting aid to the truly vulnerable to ensure taxpayers aren’t being ripped off?" Voters are split on who bears more responsibility for fraud: individuals misrepresenting eligibility or organizations and contractors misrepresenting costs (50% each). FOX NEWS POLL: AS ECONOMIC PAIN DEEPENS, DISAPPROVAL OF TRUMP HITS NEW HIGH On fraud prevention, more voters trust their state governments (60% a great deal or some confidence) than the federal government (51%). There is notable bipartisan consensus on the…